Talking Horses: the Grand National is much safer and all the better for it

Rachael Blackmore on Minella Times (right) jump the Chair on their way to winning the Grand National last year. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian

The most famous and popular horse races in Britain and the US do not, at first glance, have a great deal in common. The Grand National is a four-and-a-quarter mile handicap steeplechase on turf, for instance, while the Kentucky Derby is a Grade One 10-furlong Flat race for three-year-olds on dirt, to highlight just a few of the many differences between the two.

But a fascinating column by Gary West for the US TVG network’s website a few days ago is a reminder that, like most of the truly historic sporting events, both the Kentucky Derby and the Grand National continue to change and evolve.